Hi,I find content and article writing is very time consuming and one can just go on to spend his life yet writing and adding little. On the other hand one rarely gets good content writers. All one sees around are duplications and attempts to feed search engines than to fee site visitors.Any one here can suggest some tips for good content writing, that can be handy. Practical things out of own experience can be useful

r937
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2011-08-18T00:43:25Z —
#2

best writing tip evar -- write what you know

your readers can spot crap, so don't just fill the page with anything

say, why are you writing, anyway? i think that's the first thing that needs to be addressed

Stevie_D
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2011-08-18T11:28:57Z —
#3

The best tips for writing are:

Read a variety of different styles and genres, fact and fiction, news and comment, blog and print. Get a feel for what works well in writing, what writing style suits you, what writing style will suit your audience.

Study rules of grammar, punctuation and typography. If you don't get those right, it doesn't matter how good your content is, you'll really struggle to get any credibility as an author. Even down to little things like the difference between hyphens, en-dashes and em-dashes – they might sound like pedantic hypercorrectness to you, but they all contribute to the impression of quality that your readers will form.

Learn about your subject matter. Write about something you know about and are interested in. Research around it. If it's a topic area that has been covered extensively elsewhere, try to find a new angle so that you're adding something of value and not just rehashing the same stuff that's already out there.

mwaraitch
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2011-08-18T20:24:01Z —
#4

r937 said:

best writing tip evar -- write what you know

your readers can spot crap, so don't just fill the page with anything

say, why are you writing, anyway? i think that's the first thing that needs to be addressed

I think this is very important and very first basic steps. Know what you are saying is very obvious. Rather one has to know more than others to be of useful to them.

mwaraitch
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2011-08-18T20:26:08Z —
#5

Stevie_D said:

The best tips for writing are:

Read a variety of different styles and genres, fact and fiction, news and comment, blog and print. Get a feel for what works well in writing, what writing style suits you, what writing style will suit your audience.

Study rules of grammar, punctuation and typography. If you don't get those right, it doesn't matter how good your content is, you'll really struggle to get any credibility as an author. Even down to little things like the difference between hyphens, en-dashes and em-dashes – they might sound like pedantic hypercorrectness to you, but they all contribute to the impression of quality that your readers will form.

Learn about your subject matter. Write about something you know about and are interested in. Research around it. If it's a topic area that has been covered extensively elsewhere, try to find a new angle so that you're adding something of value and not just rehashing the same stuff that's already out there.

Thank for very detailed input. It does not seem there is a short cut to hard work. Some thing which can make the art of writing smarter and faster. I would just add one aspect ie Write as much as you can.

r937
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2011-08-18T20:45:22Z —
#6

mwaraitch said:

I think this is very important and very first basic steps.

but you sidestepped my question

there are two types of article

one is intended to be read by real human beings, and must be written with care

the other is intended to be spammed all over the web into any article directory that will accept it, for the purpose of gaining backlinks

for this second type of article, you really don't need to take care with your writing at all, because there never was any intention that a real human being would read it

so that's why i asked

TerryTyke
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2011-08-19T00:29:26Z —
#7

Unfortunately, writing only about things you know can limit you quite a bit and may not prove to be too profitable. Developing the ability to write on virtually any subject with reasonable authority I think is key, which comes down to research, which, in turn, sad to say, comes down to those dreaded four-letter words, "hard work"!

annabelle07
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2011-08-19T06:50:25Z —
#8

TerryTyke said:

Unfortunately, writing only about things you know can limit you quite a bit and may not prove to be too profitable. Developing the ability to write on virtually any subject with reasonable authority I think is key, which comes down to research, which, in turn, sad to say, comes down to those dreaded four-letter words, "hard work"!

Just wanted to add to this - but research and hard-work can be fun cos you learn so much more than you already know and you're able to actually form an opinion and convey it through the articles you write. In the end, the satisfaction of knowing that your written work has been useful to someone is pretty great!:)It drives you to work hard at mastering a particular subject - always useful.

cmdweb
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2011-08-19T09:17:49Z —
#9

I think you have to look at the underlying 'problem' with web content at the moment. I'm not suggesting the OP is guilty of this, but the post does have some elements in common with posts I've seen elsewhere that point to the issue.

Many people are getting into web content writing because they want to put up a website and make a couple of quid. This leads people to get into subject areas that they are not familiar with, and with little or no money to spend on quality content, can result in poor quality, badly written articles appearing all over the web. It's the motivation behind the writing that's the issue for me. I completely agree with the advice to write what you know, but profitability drives people to subjects they don't know. As a result, the passion for the subject is not there and the quality of writing suffers.

As long as people are trying to get websites set up as a result of keyword research this issue isn't going to go away. The best advice for people wanting to do this is either to do the subject research (aka hard work) and take your time writing high quality content (aka hard work) before you put the site up, or buy the content from an authoritative source.If neither of these options is open to you, then maybe a website is not for you.

Shyflower
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2011-08-19T13:50:05Z —
#10

cmdweb said:

Many people are getting into web content writing because they want to put up a website and make a couple of quid. This leads people to get into subject areas that they are not familiar with, and with little or no money to spend on quality content, can result in poor quality, badly written articles appearing all over the web.

I totally agree with this and I believe another part of the problem is the misconception that PPC and other advert programs are a pathway to wealth. What happens is that hopeful entrepreneurs try to make articles a foundation of a business rather than using them to extend the reach of an already viable business.

Another problem is that these individuals are clueless about starting and running a profitable business. They begin with no cash, no plan, and no background in both the their subject matter (niche) or in business administration.

mwaraitch
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2011-08-20T22:39:44Z —
#11

r937 said:

but you sidestepped my question

there are two types of article

one is intended to be read by real human beings, and must be written with care

the other is intended to be spammed all over the web into any article directory that will accept it, for the purpose of gaining backlinks

for this second type of article, you really don't need to take care with your writing at all, because there never was any intention that a real human being would read it

so that's why i asked

Personally, I respect the search engine as much as my readers. I think that is bottom line of all SEO. If you can get a respect of a human, search engine will be taking you high anyway.

mwaraitch
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2011-08-20T22:42:04Z —
#12

Shyflower said:

Another problem is that these individuals are clueless about starting and running a profitable business. They begin with no cash, no plan, and no background in both the their subject matter (niche) or in business administration.

I don't know how and why, but I fee there is a common believe in many quarters about free income from web based work, some things like walking in a garden having dollars on the trees.

mwaraitch
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2011-08-20T22:43:32Z —
#13

This also brings me to idea of getting the content written. Any ideas on some genuine writers and approximate cost on should plan for content writing for a small biz.

mwaraitch
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2011-08-20T22:55:54Z —
#14

There is also lots of services (and it may not amuse them) offering things links writing one article and submitting it to say 50 related locations. Will it not suffice to have it at one relevant site. Will same article at 50 locations matter much.

system
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2011-08-24T20:57:18Z —
#15

mwaraitch said:

Hi,I find content and article writing is very time consuming and one can just go on to spend his life yet writing and adding little. On the other hand one rarely gets good content writers. All one sees around are duplications and attempts to feed search engines than to fee site visitors.Any one here can suggest some tips for good content writing, that can be handy. Practical things out of own experience can be useful

You can find article writing easy if you have the skills and passion in doing it.Writing is not an easy tasks, you just need to enjoy and love it.

mwaraitch
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2011-08-24T21:07:05Z —
#16

honeyprime said:

You can find article writing easy if you have the skills and passion in doing it.Writing is not an easy tasks, you just need to enjoy and love it.

Yes, that is the bottom line for any work, not only the articles. However, at some levels you do not have time for all your passions and thus need to find alternatives.

pinkypainter
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2011-08-25T08:14:50Z —
#17

Article writing is a very interesting work if you like reading and writing. A good article able to provide vivid description and the articles are imaginative.

I found out, in order to survive in the Internet world, the skills of article writing is somehow a MUST-HAVE skills.

Start reading and start doing writing today, you will enjoy the Internet world when you master the writing skills

iamdisappear
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2011-08-29T02:26:40Z —
#18

It's an old post, but it's the thing I looking for. Writing isn't too tough, but it's hard to start... I think. Whenever you know what you want to write, just try and share it. Thanks for such a good hint anyway

mwaraitch
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2011-08-29T18:01:32Z —
#19

If I conclude the discussion so far, it leads to:-- Knowing subject.- Reading to improve own knowledge.- Having love for writing and enjoying own work.- Hard work.I assume all of these are essential for doing almost every work in the world. The "tips" would mean, something out of experience to make thing relatively better or simpler or quicker, given that above things are standard items, followed in any case.

white_media
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2011-09-12T15:30:29Z —
#20

I personally find that the best articles are ones that display a firm grasp on the subject at hand. Be informed about what you are writing about. If you are researching a topic, find the best sources. It's also helpful to choose subject that truly interest you, because your enthusiasm will shine in your writing.